Escondido fugitive arrested in Mexico

A gang member and convicted criminal accused of shooting at two Escondido police officers has been apprehended in Mexico.

Sergio Lopez

/ Escondido Police Department

Sergio Lopez

Sergio Lopez (/ Escondido Police Department)

Sergio Alejandro Lopez, 25, was taken into custody Wednesday by Mexican authorities and returned about 9 p.m. to the U.S., where he was released to Escondido detectives and booked into jail, Lt. Mike Loarie said Thursday.

Lopez, a documented gang member who goes by the moniker “Downer” and has two strikes against him, is accused of opening fire on the officers about 12:30 a.m. on Feb. 9 near the Escondido Terrace Mobile Home Park on Oak Hill Drive, Loarie said.

He said the officers were trying to apprehend Lopez after his girlfriend told authorities he had threatened to kill her and her children.

Lopez ran into the mobile home park, leading to a 15-hour search of the neighborhood by SWAT teams, a helicopter and about 100 officers, Loarie said.

Court records show that Lopez has prior convictions for assault with a deadly weapon, and in 2010 pleaded guilty to using force against his girlfriend and interfering with a peace officer.

If convicted in the current case, he could face life in prison. Lopez has been charged with several counts including assault on a police officer, assault with a semiautomatic firearm, obstruction, battery, illegal discharge of a firearm and parole violations. His bail has been set at $2 million and is scheduled to be arraigned Friday.

Loarie said Lopez, who is a U.S. citizen, most likely has been in Mexico since the shooting. Lopez had been seen there but was always “one or two steps ahead of us,” Loarie said.

He credited the cooperation between U.S. and Mexican authorities as well as the efforts of the U.S. Marshals Office for Lopez’s apprehension.